The Question I Hate
March 7, 2018 /3BL Media/ - In honor of International Women’s Day on March 8, I’d like to share the question I get most often as a female leader.
It’s also the question I hate the most:
“What’s the business case for gender diversity?”
Ugh.
There are other variations:
“What’s the business case for diversity in general?”
“How does gender parity affect my bottom line?”
“How does being inclusive help me meet my KPIs?”
I am asked one of these almost every time I speak publicly and I just cannot answer again. Frankly, if a business leader doesn’t get it at this point, I feel sorry for that person. Their company won't be here in five years.
In the spirit of generosity and IWD, however, I will offer the below links to anyone who still needs to ask:
- Sodexo’s Gender Balance Study, 2018
- Delivering Through Diversity, McKinsey 2017
- The Business Case for Diversity, The Digitalist, 2017
- Why Diverse Teams Are Smarter, Harvard Business Review, 2016
- Why Diversity Matters, McKinsey, 2015
- Companies Behaving Responsibly: Gender Diversity On Boards, 2015
- Diversity Matters, Catalyst (Infographic) 2014
- Gender Diversity and Corporate Performance, Credit Suisse Research, 2012
What evidence would you add?